Rome, Oct 29 (IANS/AKI) France and Germany will take 70 of the more than 100 migrants stranded on the charity rescue ship Ocean Viking for the past 12 days, Italy's Interior Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

"Concerning the migrants on board the Ocean Viking, the procedure to relocate them has just been completed line with the pre-agreement reached at the Malta summit," said the statement, referring to a mini-summit held on the tiny Mediterranean island nation on September 19.

"France and Germany in particular will take 70 migrants. Pozzallo has now been identified as a disembarkation port," the statement said.

French charities SOS Mediterranee and Doctors without Borders, which operate the Ocean Viking said last week they had requested permission to land in either Italy or Malta.

The Ocean Viking was previously offered war-wracked Libya as a place of safety, but refused to land there.

SOS Mediterranee said that according to international law no port in Libya could be considered safe.

--IANS/AKI
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